I couldn’t decide on a title for this story, which is just too rife with entendre of all kinds to pass up. It seems artist Cosimo Cavallaro’s plans to exhibit his latest work at the Lab Gallery housed in the Roger Smith Hotel on Lexington Avenue in Manhattan next week have crumbled. Why? Cavallaro, best known for such tasteful culinary artwork as painting a hotel room in melted mozzarella, wanted to display in a window that can be seen from the street, a six-foot tall, nude, anatomically correct, spread-arm statue of Jesus during the holiest week in the Christian calendar–Easter week.
Does it surprise anyone–aside from Cavallaro (supposedly) that Catholics from Cardinal Eagan on down came out of the woodwork to decry if not the statue itself, then the timing of the exhibit?
We all know I am a lapsed Catholic. I have no religious objections to a nude Jesus (though it does set off the EWWWW factor, for sure). I have no objection to artistic nudity unless the work itself is unappealing. I even think it was kind of cool that the artist planned to let patrons have samples from the statue–talk about having a bit of Christ in you. What I do object to is the disingenuous posturing of the artist when asked about the relevance and timing of his work.
Cavallaro, apparently a fellow lapsed Catholic claimed the timing had nothing to do with the theme of his work–that’s just when there was time on the calendar. Yeah, right. And they sell peeps shaped like pumpkins at Halloween accidentally, too. I don’t mind folks wanting to shake stuff up or use the calendar to their advantage, but please, let’s not treat the rest of us like morons.
Cavallaro mockingly promised to say a Hail Mary for every person his statue offended. Apparently Cavallaro will be spared saying a hell of a lot of prayers (though not binging on a hell of a lot of chocolate) since his exhibit got excised (or is it exorcised) from the gallery’s line-up. But it makes me wonder what’s next for the artist? A borscht Budda? A marshmallow Mohammed? If it’s the latter, make sure to keep the month of Ramadaan open for the exhibit. Sheesh!
Saw this one on CNN over the weekend. I don’t think I’d be offended by the art but I agree, the timing was not coincidental. So Cossimo, man up, and admit that you were going for the shock factor and media exposure juxtaposing this with Passover and Easter would bring.